Hi Renata – Several of my DWG members have complained to me about a member of our team who wears way too much perfume and he re-applies it every few hours. This is causing headaches and dizziness for some workers. I have communicated this issue to our management, and they say that nothing can be done. Is there any way to resolve this?
Whilst there is no specific legislation relating to perfumes and scents at work, your employer does have a duty under s.21 of the OHS Act to "provide and maintain for employees so far as reasonably practicable .... a working environment that is safe and without risk to health." So, if there are employees who are suffering adverse symptoms as a result of exposure to excessive perfumes or scents, at the very least the issue must be managed by the employer in consultation with employees and HSRs.
If you have an employee elected health and safety representative (HSR) at your workplace you can raise this issue with them. HSRs have rights and powers to address safety issues with management and be involved in the issue resolution process. Actions that your HSR can take to address this issue include:
- formally requesting that your employer consult on this matter using our Consultation Email template
- supporting DWG members to report any symptoms into your organisation’s incident/hazard reporting system
- gathering information about the issue, including -
- information the employer has such as past incident reports, sick leave trends, rosters, chemical registers
- survey the DWG members to establish the extent of the issue and the symptoms people are experiencing
- try to identify all sources of the problem – general cleaning and bathroom products, employees’ personal products, building materials, and other sources of scents that can all contribute to the issue
- try to avoid focusing only on an individual
- don’t forget to keep a record of all consultation about this issue – try our Record of Consultation template
In consulting with management HSRs could suggest that a policy be developed and implemented to encourage a scent-free workplace. Ensuring that cleaning products used in the space are scent-free and are stored in sealed containers, providing better ventilation and encouraging all employees to use scent-free products can help to reduce the effects of scents.
You can find information about perfumes and scents in the workplace at our Perfumes and scents: chemicals too! - OHS Reps page, including some practicable actions that can be taken to minimise the effects on employees and other people sharing the workplace.
It is also worth noting that persons with multiple chemical sensitivity may become sensitized to chemicals used in the manufacture of perfumes and scents. You can learn more about this topic at our Multiple Chemical Sensitivity - OHS Reps page.
"Multiple chemical sensitivity" (MCS), or "environmental illness" or "sick building syndrome" are all terms to describe the problems of exposures to chemicals that adversely affect our health. It is also now known as idiopathic environmental intolerances (IEI).
Once workers have become sensitized to chemicals at work, their sensitivities often broaden to a wide variety of chemicals that in the past did not affect them (these can range from perfumes to paints, from carpets to fuels) leading to a broad range of symptoms.
Should your employer continue to ignore this issue I recommend that your HSR consider issuing a provisional improvement notice (PIN) to prompt a resolution, or contact your union organiser for guidance and support in resolving this issue.
If you have any questions about OHS we encourage to fill out an Ask Renata query and one of our officials will get back to you shortly. Alternatively give Ask Renatabot a try!